Marvel's favorite pessimist looks through his darkest glass yet into a world where 'marvel' is just another word for 'horror.' Nuclear warfare, internment camps, government oppression, drug addiction, degradation, suicide...and those are just the ones we have words for. Have the men and women we know as heroes made the situation better or worse? Here's a hint: In the Ruins Marvel's favorite pessimist looks through his darkest glass yet into a world where 'marvel' is just another word for 'horror.' Nuclear warfare, internment camps, government oppression, drug addiction, degradation, suicide...and those are just the ones we have words for. Have the men and women we know as heroes made the situation better or worse? Here's a hint: In the Ruins, radiation only kills. Collecting RUINS #1-2. 80 PGS. (LOGO VARIANT COVER)
Ruins
Marvel's favorite pessimist looks through his darkest glass yet into a world where 'marvel' is just another word for 'horror.' Nuclear warfare, internment camps, government oppression, drug addiction, degradation, suicide...and those are just the ones we have words for. Have the men and women we know as heroes made the situation better or worse? Here's a hint: In the Ruins Marvel's favorite pessimist looks through his darkest glass yet into a world where 'marvel' is just another word for 'horror.' Nuclear warfare, internment camps, government oppression, drug addiction, degradation, suicide...and those are just the ones we have words for. Have the men and women we know as heroes made the situation better or worse? Here's a hint: In the Ruins, radiation only kills. Collecting RUINS #1-2. 80 PGS. (LOGO VARIANT COVER)
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Mike –
This is a weird little artifact, a kind of bleak meta-“What If...?” for all those who need a dash of cynicism alongside their pleasant main course. The art of frankly a wreck, like the artists continues to spill his inks at random and decides to make the rest of the page wrap itself around it. What’s missing is any heart, an appreciation of the subjects - this is ppainful to wade through, makes my Inner fanboy sick with how hard it is to make any sense of the panels. I have to wonder if this illeg This is a weird little artifact, a kind of bleak meta-“What If...?” for all those who need a dash of cynicism alongside their pleasant main course. The art of frankly a wreck, like the artists continues to spill his inks at random and decides to make the rest of the page wrap itself around it. What’s missing is any heart, an appreciation of the subjects - this is ppainful to wade through, makes my Inner fanboy sick with how hard it is to make any sense of the panels. I have to wonder if this illegible scrawl of an art job is a direct parody of Alex Ross’ amazing paint jobs found in Marvels among others - or are the artists just that mediocre? The writing’s not much better - not angry enough to be funny, not so insightful that it tells us much profundity about the Marvel universe. Mostly just scribblings to stitch together a bunch of reveals of Ellis thinking about how a couple of dozen iconic heroes could become something awful.
Alex Sarll –
I don't think I realised Ellis' sulky riposte to Marvels had been collected. Arguably a perfect example of grim'n'gritty going too far, but still very funny in places. I don't think I realised Ellis' sulky riposte to Marvels had been collected. Arguably a perfect example of grim'n'gritty going too far, but still very funny in places.
47Time –
Philip Sheldon inteds to document what happened with Marvel's superheroes and write a book about it before the infection in his body claims his life. The world was set for a wave of superpowered people, but something happened and it all went wrong. He meets with several characters, heroes and villains in the normal universe. They are all deformed mentally and bodily. He takes an interview from Mar-Vell, a former captain from the Kree, an alien civilization that tried to conquer the world. Their c Philip Sheldon inteds to document what happened with Marvel's superheroes and write a book about it before the infection in his body claims his life. The world was set for a wave of superpowered people, but something happened and it all went wrong. He meets with several characters, heroes and villains in the normal universe. They are all deformed mentally and bodily. He takes an interview from Mar-Vell, a former captain from the Kree, an alien civilization that tried to conquer the world. Their cloaking technology was negated by energy from the dying Silver Surfer, then they were repelled by Earth's nuclear missiles. Fury turned into a cannibalistic anarchist who kills himself in front of Sheldon. Mystique's multiple personalities rip her body apart. A man with a broken Gauss device strapped to his body causes immense destruction in an airport. Cyclops and other X-Men, all a shadow of their former powerful selves, are imprisoned after losing control of their powers and their minds. Basically, everything that could go wrong, went wrong, very much unlike in the normal Marvel universe. (view spoiler)[The ending is tragic for Sheldon. He planned to use the time he had left to write a book about superpowered people based on his interviews and a score of pictures he gathered. He got infected a while ago by Peter Parker with a virus after the latter's encounter with a radioactive spider. Sheldon dies before he can write the book. (hide spoiler)]
Andrew –
A really poorly executed look at what the Marvel universe would look like if 'everything went wrong'. We follow a photographer who goes around interviewing superheros and affiliates. This is Ellis's pestimistic alternative world version of Busiek's Marvels which came out the previous year; even the art is a muddy, awful parody of Alex Ross's. We see how heroes went wrong. For example Hulk, instead of turning into the beast we know him as, has his limbs explode and is incredible pain but still ali A really poorly executed look at what the Marvel universe would look like if 'everything went wrong'. We follow a photographer who goes around interviewing superheros and affiliates. This is Ellis's pestimistic alternative world version of Busiek's Marvels which came out the previous year; even the art is a muddy, awful parody of Alex Ross's. We see how heroes went wrong. For example Hulk, instead of turning into the beast we know him as, has his limbs explode and is incredible pain but still alive and locked up in a secret government location. Most of the explanations make no sense. The Silver Surfer decided to commit suicide and in doing so destroyed the cloaking devices of the alien species the Skrulls - so now the skrulls are dying of cancer and are in a concentration camp, or something like that. Stupid. This explores some of the themes that Ellis would take up once again in his masterwork Planetary. Please, please, please read that book instead.
John Pistelli –
I remember wanting to read this in 1995, but I couldn't for some reason—I think it was sold out at my comics shop—so when I saw that it was collected in The Marvels Companion I sat around and read it in a half hour at the library as a gift to my 13-year-old self. Ellis gives us a gruesomely amusing two-way satire. Its picture of a Murphy's Law Marvel Universe, where the Hulk is a cancer and the Black Panther has been jailed and Professor X is an evil president and radioactive spider bites cause I remember wanting to read this in 1995, but I couldn't for some reason—I think it was sold out at my comics shop—so when I saw that it was collected in The Marvels Companion I sat around and read it in a half hour at the library as a gift to my 13-year-old self. Ellis gives us a gruesomely amusing two-way satire. Its picture of a Murphy's Law Marvel Universe, where the Hulk is a cancer and the Black Panther has been jailed and Professor X is an evil president and radioactive spider bites cause incurable disease, is a nice rebuke to Kurt Busiek/Alex Ross's Silver Age Rockwellian revanchist optimism of Marvels, while Ruins's very excess of violent grotesquery takes to a self-parodying limit the cynical grimness of the British Invasion writers' approach to super-heroes.
Ashish –
An awesome interpretation of the bright, shiny happy world of superheroes and how it would react with reality... the dark, deranged cousin of Miracleman, this is not for the faint of heart and for those who love their icons too much. Read it prepared to receive a rude reality slap in the face. It's kind of like watching a massive, elaborate, beautiful sandcastle get washed away by the sea - beauty in destruction. An awesome interpretation of the bright, shiny happy world of superheroes and how it would react with reality... the dark, deranged cousin of Miracleman, this is not for the faint of heart and for those who love their icons too much. Read it prepared to receive a rude reality slap in the face. It's kind of like watching a massive, elaborate, beautiful sandcastle get washed away by the sea - beauty in destruction.
Knigel Holmes –
I really wish this comic were longer. It was great and has so much potential.
Harold Smithson –
Ellis' incredibly dark and cynical take on the Marvel universe oscillates between pointlessly edgy and grimly poignant. The darkness frequently seems layered on for its own sake, but eventually there is a point to most of it. Some people have suggested that Ruins is evidence that Ellis hates mainstream comics, but here I actually saw a very spirited defense of Marvel's output. His entire point is that the inspiring figures of comic book heroes are a source of hope in a world where the potential o Ellis' incredibly dark and cynical take on the Marvel universe oscillates between pointlessly edgy and grimly poignant. The darkness frequently seems layered on for its own sake, but eventually there is a point to most of it. Some people have suggested that Ruins is evidence that Ellis hates mainstream comics, but here I actually saw a very spirited defense of Marvel's output. His entire point is that the inspiring figures of comic book heroes are a source of hope in a world where the potential of individuals frequently goes unrealized through no fault of their own. That Ellis acknowledges the world can be very dark, arbitrary, and disappointing is the book's primary strength. It's also really short, which is nice.
Venus Maneater –
Maybe I would've given this five stars if I'd read it back during its first release. But now, now it just feels edgy for all the edge and Warren Ellis's hate and pure despise for mainstream comics and (super)heros leak through. He just sounds so, so bitter. I would've liked it maybe a bit more if the journalist didn't accidentally encounter every.single.marvel.hero. Everyone. Sometimes they just drop dead straight from the sky, bleeding on him. 2.5 stars, because the art is beautiful. That's it. Maybe I would've given this five stars if I'd read it back during its first release. But now, now it just feels edgy for all the edge and Warren Ellis's hate and pure despise for mainstream comics and (super)heros leak through. He just sounds so, so bitter. I would've liked it maybe a bit more if the journalist didn't accidentally encounter every.single.marvel.hero. Everyone. Sometimes they just drop dead straight from the sky, bleeding on him. 2.5 stars, because the art is beautiful. That's it. What a waste of time.
Mitchell Kukulka –
At times more interesting for the morbid curiosity it inspires than its actual "plot," Ellis & Company's funhouse-mirror take on Busiek's earlier masterpiece "Marvels" will definitely stick with you after it's over, but maybe more because it's so dementedly subversive instead of presenting any themes that leave a lasting impression. Extra kudos for the art that feels like Norman Rockwell's nightmares. At times more interesting for the morbid curiosity it inspires than its actual "plot," Ellis & Company's funhouse-mirror take on Busiek's earlier masterpiece "Marvels" will definitely stick with you after it's over, but maybe more because it's so dementedly subversive instead of presenting any themes that leave a lasting impression. Extra kudos for the art that feels like Norman Rockwell's nightmares.
Drew –
Entertaining as a concept to contemplate, but not actually a fun read in any way. This was blackly humorous at points, but mostly just bleak. Glad I read it, won't read it again. Entertaining as a concept to contemplate, but not actually a fun read in any way. This was blackly humorous at points, but mostly just bleak. Glad I read it, won't read it again.
Neyebur –
Un interesante "What if?", pero aunque se presenta como una versión más realista del Universo Marvel, es más bien una versión más deprimente. Un interesante "What if?", pero aunque se presenta como una versión más realista del Universo Marvel, es más bien una versión más deprimente.
Ben Shee –
Dark as hell.
Kevin –
A fun, dark little romp through a version of the marvel universe that follows murphy's law: Anything that can go wrong will. Avengers nuked out of the sky, Professor X the controller of america, Punisher shot on his first mission, Matt Murdock killed by the car, Peter Parker dying of radioactive spider bite. This is the kind of stuff that happens in this world. Certainly not for those that love their heroes too much, this comic is best looked at as a dark parody of Marvels. It's good if you're i A fun, dark little romp through a version of the marvel universe that follows murphy's law: Anything that can go wrong will. Avengers nuked out of the sky, Professor X the controller of america, Punisher shot on his first mission, Matt Murdock killed by the car, Peter Parker dying of radioactive spider bite. This is the kind of stuff that happens in this world. Certainly not for those that love their heroes too much, this comic is best looked at as a dark parody of Marvels. It's good if you're into the alternate universe doom and gloom sort of stories, and the closest comparison I could draw would be to Marvel Zombies, where there are no real heroes, and everything is shrouded in dark humor and irony.
Joseph Azzurro –
Breve, ma veramente intenso. Un viaggio nel disagio, nella desolazione e nella morte. Disilluso, catastrofico e drammatico, Ruins è un "anti-Marvels". Laddove Busiek e Ross ci mostravano un mondo pieno di speranza, come dei bambini eccitati la notte prima di Natale, Ellis, Nielsen e Moeller devastano il lettore, catapultandolo in una realtà dove tutto è andato male, dove non è la speranza a farla da padrona, quanto la legge di Murphy. Le tavole, cupe e pregne di disagio, sono ottime, sporche e a Breve, ma veramente intenso. Un viaggio nel disagio, nella desolazione e nella morte. Disilluso, catastrofico e drammatico, Ruins è un "anti-Marvels". Laddove Busiek e Ross ci mostravano un mondo pieno di speranza, come dei bambini eccitati la notte prima di Natale, Ellis, Nielsen e Moeller devastano il lettore, catapultandolo in una realtà dove tutto è andato male, dove non è la speranza a farla da padrona, quanto la legge di Murphy. Le tavole, cupe e pregne di disagio, sono ottime, sporche e angoscianti, mentre un Ellis in ottima forma, in veramente poche pagine, riesce a colpire il lettore con un pugno dritto alla bocca dello stomaco con un cinismo inaudito. Una piccola perla di negatività targata Marvel, consigliata a chi vuole roba forte e dura da digerire.
Ondra Král –
Nápad otočit Zázraky o 180 stupňů je fajn, ale provedení příliš nezaujalo. Celé je to jen přehlídka všech výrazných hrdinů v co situacích, kdy jsou buď mrtví nebo zmrzačení (u hrdinů je to většinou originem, u mutantů špatně fungujícíma schopnosti). Až mě to někdy přišlo jako výsledek nějaké debaty v hospodě "Jak by hrdina X mohl dopadnout co nejhůr." Novinář tu pak jen funguje pojítko mezi všemi hrdiny. Kresba je hnusná. Nápad otočit Zázraky o 180 stupňů je fajn, ale provedení příliš nezaujalo. Celé je to jen přehlídka všech výrazných hrdinů v co situacích, kdy jsou buď mrtví nebo zmrzačení (u hrdinů je to většinou originem, u mutantů špatně fungujícíma schopnosti). Až mě to někdy přišlo jako výsledek nějaké debaty v hospodě "Jak by hrdina X mohl dopadnout co nejhůr." Novinář tu pak jen funguje pojítko mezi všemi hrdiny. Kresba je hnusná.
Darren –
How did this even get made? The whole thing is a fuck you to Marvels, and to superhero fiction in its entirety. Which is totally fine and not all that unique, I'm just shocked that Marvel actually got behind it. How did this even get made? The whole thing is a fuck you to Marvels, and to superhero fiction in its entirety. Which is totally fine and not all that unique, I'm just shocked that Marvel actually got behind it.
Berslon Pank –
Some of this was fun, but not enough of it for me to like it a whole lot.
Oliver Bateman –
a fun little script from a pre-stardom ellis, but my god, the art, though attractive, is incomprehensible. it is what it is--a nice "what if" to pair with alex ross' "marvels." a fun little script from a pre-stardom ellis, but my god, the art, though attractive, is incomprehensible. it is what it is--a nice "what if" to pair with alex ross' "marvels."
Lindsey.parks –
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
Steven –
Strange, alternative, post-apocalyptic tale of a superhero world where everything has gone to hell...
Ben –
Jordan Elision –
Keith –
Jonathan Gibbons –
Sorry Entertainer –
Chip –
Drew –
Векослав Стефановски –
David Garnsey –